'Terrible for America': Ohio paper rips J.D. Vance and Jim Jordan for Merrick Garland attack

14 June 2024

On Wednesday, June 12, the U.S. House of Representatives voted, 216-207, to hold U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for refusing to hand over audio recordings of President Joe Biden's interviews with Robert Hur — the former special counsel who led a federal investigation of classified documents that were found in Biden's Delaware home. Hur ultimately declined to bring any charges.

The June 12 vote came down along party lines, and only one House Republican voted against holding Garland in contempt of Congress: Rep. David Joyce (R-Ohio).

In a podcast posted on June 14, Cleveland.com's Laura Johnston and her colleague Chris Quinn praised Joyce for taking a "principled stand" but were vehemently critical of other Ohio Republicans — namely, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan and Sen. J.D. Vance.

Quinn offered scathing criticism of Vance, arguing, "J.D. Vance is in overdrive, apparently in his effort to win Donald Trump's nod for vice president. But the things he is doing are horribly damaging to the American public."

Quinn also argued, "J.D. Vance also was one of the Republicans who fell into a Democratic trap over women's rights issues. How did he vote on a proposal to make sure prospective parents are guaranteed a right to in vitro fertilization?"

Quinn slammed Jordan as contemptuous of federal law enforcement.

"The FBI is one of the most professional institutions in the history of the country," Quinn told his colleagues. "Any cop reporter knows when the FBI is doing the investigation, you can generally count on high-level work. And for Jim Jordan to be blasting them, to be eroding the Justice Department, faith in the Justice Department, for his political points is terrible for America…. And Dave Joyce knew it. He said it, and it's so good that a guy from Ohio is the one that stood against the worst villain in Congress from Ohio, which is Jim Jordan."

Johnston said of Joyce, "He followed his conscience, and hats off to him. Because when the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives voted on Wednesday, they heeded Jim Jordan's call…. to find U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for not turning over a special counsel's recorded interviews with President Joe Biden."

Johnston continued, "So, Dave Joyce was the only Republican who dissented, and he put out a statement where he talked about his principles. He said: As a former prosecutor, I cannot, in good conscience, support a resolution that would further politicize our judicial system to score political points. The American people expect Congress to work for them, solve policy problems and prioritize good governance."

The Cleveland.com journalist went on to say, during the podcast, that Joyce deserves a "round of applause."

Johnson commented, "I hope other people look to him and say, 'You know, he stood up to this landslide of partisanship. I want to do the same thing too.'"

Johnston noted that Garland didn't want to hand over the recordings of Biden being interviewed by Hur because he feared it would "hamper witnesses' cooperation with future investigations."

Johnston's Cleveland.com colleague Chris Quinn told her, "The contrast yesterday…. could not be stronger. Most of the Republicans in Congress welcomed Donald Trump back to the Capitol. This is a guy who sparked an insurrection to overthrow the government…. And these bozos are partying with him like they're all having a great time. And this is the day after Dave Joyce stands up against the kind of thing that's going on there."

The full Cleveland.com podcast is available at this link.

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